Cajuns Get First Win by Beating Texas, 8-6

The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns scored in four of their first five at-bats Sunday and rode a four run fifth inning to an 8-6 win over the Texas Longhorns Sunday before 5,119 fans at M. L. "Tigue" Moore Field at Russo Park.

The Cajuns (1-2) scored single runs in the first two innings and added a pair in the fourth before the four run uprising gave the hosts an 8-1 lead.

Dalton Horton (1-0), making his first appearance for the Cajuns and his first Division I appearance since early in the 2017 season, allowed just one run on three hits over five innings to get the victory. Horton walked three and struck out five in a 92 pitch performance. Freshman starter Coy Cobb (0-1) took the loss for the Longhorns.

Louisiana got on the board in the first inning thanks to a double steal, but Texas (2-1) tied the game on a double, a fly ball and a throwing error. The Cajuns took the lead for good in the second inning on Gavin Bourgeois' safety squeeze bunt and added two more in the fourth inning on an RBI double by Todd Lott and a Daniel Lahare sacrifice fly.

Hayden Cantrelle started the big fifth inning with a double, his first hit of the season. Handsome Monica and Jordan Wiley both walked to load the bases against reliever Jack Neely, the fourth UT pitcher. Matt Whelan came in and walked Brennan Breaux to force in the first un of the inning. Lott hit a sacrifice fly to score Monica and O'Neal Lochridge singled to reload the bases. Bourgeois then delivered a two run single to cap the scoring

Texas mounted a comeback in the seventh inning against reliever Jack Burk when Michael McCann reached on a Cantrelle error. Pinch hitter Lance Ford singled and McCann scored when the ball got by Wiley in right field with Ford taking third. After Duke Ellis walked, pinch hitter Eric Kennedy sliced a three run homer down the left field line to make the score 8-5.

Freshman Chance Stone got out of the seventh and pitched a scoreless eighth. But after getting the first out in the ninth, Austin Todd singled and Zach Zubia walked on a 3-2 pitch. Head coach Tony Robichaux then called on Austin Bradford, who struck out Sam Bertleson for the second out. But Bradford then issued back to back walks to Ryan Reynolds and Mason Hibbeler to force in a run and move the tying run into scoring position. But Bradford got pinch hitter Tate Shaw looking at a third strike to get his first career save.

The three game series drew 16,222 fans, a "Tigue" Moore Field record for a three game series. Louisiana travels to Ruston to face Louisiana Tech Tuesday night at 6:00 at J. C. Love Field/Pat Patterson Park.